American writer Hunter S. Thompson died this weekend from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Thompson pioneered the radical form of journalism he called “gonzo” by intertwining his reporting with first-person experiences, drug and alcohol references and endless obscenities. His work was brutally satirical, often criticizing America’s prominent politicians and the shortcomings of a culture rapt with consumerism.
As a journalist, Thompson often crossed the sacred lines that separate truth from fiction and objectivity from subjectivity. Yet he uncovered truths buried deep in the psyche of a public alienated by wars, a faltering economy and corrupt politicians. His pessimistic rants remain eerily relevant to this day.
From his classic Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail that followed the 1972 Nixon campaign, to his more recent columns for ESPN.com, Thompson threw mountains of biting wit and abject cynicism at the established power structure, representing the younger generations who have lost faith in the American Dream. We regret the loss of journalism’s greatest maverick, who rattled the world of news writing as much as he did literature in the 20th century. Critics of the status quo have lost one of their greatest warriors.
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